Latest news with #SaskatchewanPublicSafetyAgency
Global News
3 hours ago
- Climate
- Global News
Saskatchewan wildfires have forced 15,000 evacuations and counting: premier
As Manitoba grapples with wildfires that have forced more than 17,000 people from their homes, the premier of Saskatchewan said Tuesday the situation is becoming just as dire in his province. Scott Moe said upwards of 15,000 in Saskatchewan have had to leave their communities and more are likely in the coming days. 'We didn't have a very good day yesterday, with the weather the way it was, where the fires are and just how aggressive they are as they bear down on communities,' he told reporters at a wildfire update in Prince Albert, Sask. 'We're probably approaching in the neighbourhood of 15,000 people that have been evacuated across the province and being supported in communities throughout Saskatchewan, and more families are leaving their homes as we speak.' Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Moe said the biggest destruction has been in places like the northern village of Denare Beach, where some family homes have been lost. Story continues below advertisement And there will likely be challenging days ahead due to a lack of rain in the forecast. 1:48 Saskatchewan wildfire evacuees call for support Moe said he has spoken with other premiers, as well as Prime Minister Mark Carney, and was told that resources would be made available to battle the fires that continue to affect more than 30 communities. An evacuation order was handed down Monday for about 7,000 people in the town of La Ronge, nearby Air Ronge and the Lac La Ronge Indian Band. Officials said fire breached the La Ronge airport, where the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency lost its air tanker base but none of the tankers were damaged. Evacuees from the area were told to head south to Prince Albert, 240 kilometres south of La Ronge. Story continues below advertisement About 8,000 residents had already been displaced by fires in recent weeks. — By Aaron Sousa in Edmonton
Vancouver Sun
9 hours ago
- Climate
- Vancouver Sun
Saskatchewan fire evacuations grow after blaze breaches airport
The latest wildfire evacuees in Saskatchewan are being told to head south to Prince Albert after being ordered to leave the northern town of La Ronge. The Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency issued an evacuation order Monday afternoon for the 2,500 residents of La Ronge, as well as those in nearby Air Ronge and the Lac La Ronge Indian Band after a wildfire breached the town's airport. Among the affected by the order are more than 45 acute-care patients and long-term care residents from the La Ronge Health Centre and care homes, who the Saskatchewan Health Authority and the Canadian Red Cross are working to move. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. The out-of-control fire is fast moving and was listed at more than 836 square kilometres in size as of Monday evening. The La Ronge evacuation adds to the 8,000 residents already displaced by 18 fires burning in Saskatchewan, while dozens of fires in neighbouring Manitoba have sent more than 17,000 people from their homes, including 5,000 residents of Flin Flon. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew has said some 1,000 hotel rooms were being made available for evacuees in Winnipeg. Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here .
Calgary Herald
10 hours ago
- Climate
- Calgary Herald
Four communities around La Ronge, Sask., receive wildfire evacuation orders
Article content Residents of multiple communities in the La Ronge area have been given mandatory evacuation orders after an uncontained wildfire moved closer over the weekend and into Monday. Article content An update from the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA) at 6 p.m. Monday said all communities within a 20-kilometre radius of La Ronge are required to evacuate, noting that the fire had already 'breached' the nearby airport. Article content Article content La Ronge — about 240 kilometres north of Prince Albert — is billed as the largest town in northern Saskatchewan with a population of about 2,500. Article content Article content As of Monday, over 8,000 people were displaced and 163 structures (including cabins) had been lost to fire. Article content Sucker River, Wadin Bay, English Bay and Nemeiben received the area's first evacuation orders on Monday morning, followed later in the day by La Ronge, Lac La Ronge, and Air Ronge. The three latter communities — plus Stanley Mission — had been placed on standby notice earlier in the day. Lac La Ronge Indian Band Chief Tammy Cook-Searson issued the order for Sucker Bay at 10 a.m. due to the shifting advancement of the blaze (known as the Pisew fire). Article content An evacuation notice from the SPSA followed at around 11:30 a.m. for the other three subdivisions: Wadin Bay, English Bay and Nemeiben. It advised residents to travel south to La Ronge for co-ordinated supports. Article content La Ronge, Lac La Ronge and Air Ronge were added to the evacuation list late Monday afternoon, along with nearby Napatak, Eagle Point, Lamp Lake, Rabbit Creek and Potato Lake. Article content People driving their own vehicles from the area are being directed to take Highway 2 south and head to the Days Inn in Prince Albert. Those who need to catch transport by bus are to go to the Jonas Roberts Memorial Community Centre in La Ronge. Article content Highway 165 south from Besnard Lake and Highway 969 to Timber Bay were both closed due to smoke and fire. Highway 915 into Stanley Mission was also expected to be compromised. Article content Article content Article content Help on the way? Article content Article content On Monday afternoon, SPSA vice-president of operations Steve Roberts said there were 18 wildfires actively burning in Saskatchewan, with six not contained and four under assessment. Article content 'We are looking at a potential for light showers maybe towards the end of the week, but we still have a number of days of extreme fire weather in front of us,' Roberts said. Article content Situated between Prince Albert and La Ronge, residents of Molanosa and Timber Bay were evacuated Sunday due to heavy smoke caused by another wildfire (known as the Ditch fire), which is still spreading near Montreal Lake. The hamlet of Weyakwin was previously evacuated from the area on May 28.
Winnipeg Free Press
11 hours ago
- Climate
- Winnipeg Free Press
Wildfire forces more out in Saskatchewan, hotels open up for Manitoba evacuees
Winnipeg hotels were opening up Monday to evacuees who fled their homes due to raging wildfires, while to the west in Saskatchewan thousands more were ordered to flee. The Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency issued an alert late Monday afternoon saying the northern town of La Ronge had ordered an evacuation as fire had breached its airport. The agency said flames were fast moving and that people in the community of 2,500, as well as anyone within 20 kilometres, including nearby Air Ronge and the Lac La Ronge Indian Band, had to leave immediately. The blaze was listed as 836 square kilometres in size. Earlier in the day in Saskatoon, where Canada's premiers and the prime minister were meeting, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe said all of Canada has come together to help out the Prairie provinces. 'Many others around this table are consistently reaching out to the three of us to offer resources,' he said before the meeting. More than 8,000 Saskatchewan residents were already out of their homes due to fires before the order was made for the La Ronge area. As of Monday, 18 fires were burning in Saskatchewan, with seven of them not contained. In Manitoba, more than 17,000 people have been displaced since last week, including 5,000 residents of Flin Flon near the Saskatchewan boundary. Emergency centres were set up as available hotel rooms in cities have been scarce. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew said some 1,000 hotel rooms were being made available for evacuees in Winnipeg. 'Nobody wants to sleep on a cot for more than a day or two, even in an emergency,' Kinew said. 'We're connecting folks who need those enhanced accessibility supports first and then broadening it out to everybody else who needs help, too.' Some residents from Pimicikamak Cree Nation, east of Flin Flon, were taken to hotels in Niagara Falls, Ont., on Sunday. About 600 more were expected to land there Monday. 'This has been a harrowing experience for many of our people. But at the end of the day, it's all about saving lives. It's all about keeping people safe,' said Grand Chief Garrison Settee with Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, an advocacy group representing some northern First Nations in the province. Efforts to get First Nations evacuees out of Manitoba are being spearheaded by Xpera, a firm offering various security and evacuation support services. Settee said the company is handling buses, flights and hotel accommodations. Higher courts in Manitoba and Saskatchewan were also to meet this week in Winnipeg for a conference, but it was cancelled to make hotel spaces available to evacuees. The fire threatening Flin Flon began a week ago across the boundary in Saskatchewan and had grown to 400 square kilometres. Crews have said the fire was contained to outside the community's perimeter highway. Residents were ordered out Wednesday in an evacuation that Flin Flon local Derek Kemp called 'immediate and hectic.' A longtime musician, Kemp rounded up his guitars, amplifiers and a hard drive with 20 years' worth of music he couldn't leave behind. He watched the fire grow in the days leading up to the evacuation. 'I just remember seeing a little bit of black smoke,' he said. 'And then the next day, when I woke up, it was just giant plumes of smoke.' Manitoba RCMP said evacuation efforts were completed in Flin Flon and surrounding areas, Lynn Lake and Pimicikamak, Mathias Colomb and Tataskweyak Cree Nations. Manitoba reported 25 active wildfires Sunday. Officials said rain on Monday, while welcome, was 'not enough to contribute towards wildfire suppression efforts.' Kinew said support his province has received from other jurisdictions is appreciated but Canada needs to scale up its firefighting capabilities. 'As a nation, we're going to have to contend with future fire seasons being more and more like this,' he said. 'We could use every water bomber we can get our hands on.' Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said her province has seen nearly 5,000 people evacuated. There were 26 fires there listed as out-of-control. The province experienced shifting winds, so some fire crews sent elsewhere have been called home, Smith said. 'With so many communities facing evacuation … we've got to be able to respond in a way that is going to be rapid.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 2, 2025. — With files from Lisa Johnson, Aaron Sousa and Jack Farrell in Edmonton, and Sharif Hassan in Toronto
Winnipeg Free Press
16 hours ago
- Climate
- Winnipeg Free Press
In the news today: More join the thousands fleeing wildfires in Sask.
Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed… More join the thousands fleeing wildfires in Sask. The latest wildfire evacuees in Saskatchewan are arriving in Prince Albert after being ordered to leave the northern town of La Ronge due to a wildfire. The Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency issued an alert Monday afternoon saying La Ronge had ordered the 2,500 residents of the town as well as people in the surrounding area to evacuate after a wildfire breaching the airport. Among the affected are 45 acute care patients and long-term care residents, whom the Saskatchewan Health Authority says it's working with the Canadian Red Cross and public safety agency to evacuate. The fire is said to be fast moving and more than 83,600 hectares in size. There are close to 20 active fires burning in Saskatchewan, nine of which are classified as not contained. Here's what else we're watching… Wildfire closes stretch of Alaska Highway in B.C. Fire season is ramping up in British Columbia as the province's wildfire service warns of hot, dry and windy conditions in the forecast. The service's latest bulletin says the combination of factors is likely to intensify fire behaviour this week, especially in areas experiencing prolonged drought. It says that includes the northeastern corner of the province, where most of the active and out-of-control blazes in B.C. are currently located. The service has added a second blaze in northern B.C. to its list of so-called wildfires of note, saying the Summit Lake fire has forced the closure of a stretch of Highway 97, also known as the Alaska Highway, west of Fort Nelson. The wildfire service says human activity is the suspected cause of the 21-square-kilometre blaze that was discovered last Wednesday. Liberal border security legislation expected today Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree is expected to introduce a bill today spelling out the federal government's next steps on border security. The recent throne speech promised legislation to bolster security at Canada's borders and new tools for police and intelligence agencies to help them stop the flow of deadly fentanyl and its precursors. The government also said the Canada Border Services Agency will be given new powers to examine goods destined for export to prevent the movement of illegal and stolen products, including cars. The Liberals have worked to persuade U.S. President Donald Trump that Canada is doing enough to stem the southbound flow of drugs and migrants since he blamed fentanyl and irregular migration to justify tariffs on Canadian imports. The new bill will build on earlier Canadian measures, including round-the-clock surveillance of the border using helicopters, drones and surveillance towers. Hudson's Bay to ask court to OK Canadian Tire deal Hudson's Bay is expected to return to court Tuesday morning to seek approval for a $30-million deal it signed with Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd. If the deal gets the OK from Ontario's Superior Court, Canadian Tire will be able to buy the rights to Hudson's Bay's intellectual property, which includes its name, its coat of arms and its iconic stripes. Court documents have also shown the deal includes the Bay's Distinctly Home brand, its Hudson North apparel line and trademarks like 'Bay Days' and the Zellers catchphrase 'lowest price is the law.' The move to get approval for the Canadian Tire deal comes months after Canada's oldest company filed for creditor protection and days after it closed all 96 of the stores it ran under its Bay and Saks banners on Sunday. Hudson's Bay has said the sale and closures were necessary because the 355-year-old company was not able to attract an investor to keep some semblance of the current business alive. Regulator urged to restart climate disclosure work A group of 80 women leaders in business and civil society have called on Canadian securities regulators to resume work on climate disclosures. In an open letter organized by Women Leading on Climate, the signatories say the 'abrupt' April decision by regulators to halt the work puts the economy at risk. The proposed rules require companies to report their emissions, outline the risks and opportunities they face from climate change and their strategy for managing them so investors have the information they need. The Canadian Securities Administrators said it indefinitely suspended work on disclosures to focus on making markets more competitive, efficient and resilient. Signatories to the letter including University Pension Plan CEO Barbara Zvan, George Weston Ltd. director Barbara Stymiest and Climate and Nature Solutions chief executive Catherine McKenna say disclosures are about making Canada competitive. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 3, 2025.
